My post "So That's What It Feels Like" has received some attention in the local media. The story of how the sign promoting "Civil Marriage is a Civil Right" was stolen from my front yard was first picked up by the orgainzation sponsoring the campaign the sign represented, Equality Maryland. Executive Director Dan Furmansky sent out a press release titled "Backlash Felt by EQMD Sign Supporters" where he wrote about issues across the state with people stealing or vandalizing signs. Furmansky's point was that, if the campaign is upsetting opponents that much, that only shows its effectiveness.
I was also contacted by Joshua Lynsen, a reporter for the Washington Blade, to retell my incident. I was quoted in the subsequent article describing the backlash over the signs:
Among the campaign supporters who had their yard sign stolen is Jim Johnson of Rockville. Johnson, a 48-year-old straight man whose wife does gay ministry, said his sign was stolen July 28 by a neighbor who told him the sign was “littering up the neighborhood” when confronted.
“I think it comes down to a lack of respect,” he said. “That gentleman clearly didn’t respect anyone who was different from him.”
Johnson said he retrieved the sign from the trash bin it was thrown in, returned it to his yard and has not had any further troubles.
I can now cross "being quoted by a gay newspaper" off my list of things to do before I die. It was a recent addition.
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